Telecom Companies Request Distributors to Link to GST Network

Huge smartphone firms have requested their distributors to finish all awaiting registrations below the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime this week. Failing to do so might throw up legal complications, invite government action, hurt income in the quarter of July–September, and disrupt prepaid services business.

The third largest carrier in India, Idea Cellular, is said to have organized a deadline for its distributors to end GST registrations. While Vodafone India, the second largest carrier in India, is said to have informed its group of distributors to do the similar thing and also make sure that their associate vendors also follow the request, since every bond in the cycle of distribution is lawfully bound to act in accordance with GST, 3 executives having a deep knowledge of this matter told the media.

Telecom companies have informed their distributors that if they fall short to bundle up all GST registrations that are pending, it might become lawfully impossible for them to restock their talk-time balances, which might scuttle new activations, disturb stability of the prepaid services venture, and hamper product launches, and in return, strike income, claimed the executives.

Telecom companies, their retailers, and distributors were anticipated to bundle up GST registrations by July 1, 2017.

“If the issue sustains for several weeks after the deadline, the instantaneous income hit for the telecom market might be almost Rs 130–140 Crore each month till the end of the quarter of July–September,” a Senior Executive of a top mobile carrier told the media.

One of the biggest phone companies in India has requested all its distributors to immediately bundle up all GST registrations that are pending. “Lawfully, there are revenue-based exclusions, but we will need all our distributors to be registered to ease the matter,” a Top Executive of a top mobile carrier told the media.

Below the new GST policies, any venture entity providing services and goods with a yearly revenue of Rs 20 Lakh has to register, while the starting value is Rs 10 Lakh for those functioning in the Northeast. A Senior Executive of another top mobile carrier company claimed, “Our distributors have also been informed to bundle up all GST registrations that are pending and also tell fellow partner to do the same as soon as possible. This includes our company, its distributors as well as retailers. Failing to do so will have great consequences.”